Context
Stars by Ēriks Ešenvalds
Ēriks Ešenvalds (b. 1977) is one of Latvia’s – and the world’s – most celebrated contemporary choral composers. Known for his lush harmonies, cinematic textures, and deep connection to nature, his music frequently explores themes of the cosmos, light, and atmospheric beauty.
Composed in 2011 to text by American poet Sara Teasdale, Stars is a breathtaking piece for unaccompanied choir (SATB) and tuned water-filled wine glasses.
The piece captures the awe-inspiring experience of standing under a clear night sky. Instead of using traditional instrumental accompaniment, Ešenvalds directs members of the choir to play tuned wine glasses by rubbing their rims with wet fingers. The resulting continuous, ethereal drone forms a bed of sound over which the choir layers slow, overlapping vocal chords.
Listen out for:
As you listen to Stars, focus on how Ešenvalds creates atmosphere, depth, and tension using texture and acoustic colour.
- Ethereal glass drone: listen for the shimmering, continuous high-frequency pitch created by singers rubbing the rims of water-tuned wine glasses throughout the piece.
- Harmonic clusters: notice how individual vocal lines enter one at a time, stacking close, dissonant notes on top of each other before resolving into broad, open chords.
- Chamber acoustics: listen to how the piece builds from a delicate whisper into a soaring, brilliant climax at the mention of the ‘heaven of stars’ (03:23), before fading back into silence.
- Overlapping Vocal Textures: watch how short melodic fragments pass between vocal sections like echoing light, mimicking the optical twinkle of distant stars.
What do you think of the choir performing in semi-darkness and members switching torches on during the performance?
Things to consider:
Try creating a piece based around a single extended drone or ostinato layer. To create chordal dissonance you might like to try the ‘change one note’ approach as a starting point (#3 in our Composing Activities Article).